FVN Chapter 10 The Ritual to Freedom
Chapter 10 The Ritual to Freedom
[I hope all your questions and inquiries are answered, Host. So, why don't you initiate the memory assimilation? Without complying with the First Quest, you will be unable to know the remaining traits]
Ashok gave a sly smirk but didn't respond to the System's command. Without a word, he began unbuttoning his shirt.
[You do not need to remove your clothes for memory assimilation, Host.]
"I know," Ashok replied, holding the edge of his shirt with his left hand.
[Host, then stop wasting time and begin the memory assimilation.]
'This System can exert physical pressure upon me, but it can't force this memory assimilation into me. Good'
"I won't begin the process of memory assimilation just yet. What I'm about to do now is something else entirely—it's a Ritual," said Ashok, his voice steady as he began wrapping the worn shirt around his closed left fist. With his right hand, he moved deliberately, winding the fabric around his hand like a bandage, the old cloth rustling softly with each turn.
[What Ritual?]
'A ritual that will restore my freedom, and lead me to my love'.
"A Demon Summoning Ritual." The words left his lips without hesitation, though they weren't entirely accurate. He adjusted the fabric once more, pulling the cloth tighter around his fist, ensuring the makeshift bandage was secure. After a final check, he muttered under his breath "This will do."
'As if I would ever allow myself to become one with someone else's memories.' he thought bitterly, disgust welling up inside him like poison and so, he punched again, putting all his anger into the attack.
With the third punch, the mirror finally gave way. There was a sharp, almost satisfying crack as the glass splintered, and the fractured pieces tumbled away from the frame. Shards of the broken mirror cascaded down, scattering across the floor in a chaotic shower of glass. Each piece hit the ground with a sharp, crackling sound.
Some of the shards came too close for comfort, a few even grazing the back of his hand as they fell. But Ashok was spared any injury. The cloth wrapped tightly around his fist absorbed the force of the sharp edges.
[How are you going to trick it with memory assimilation?]
"A demon summoning ritual summons a demon from Hell. Summoning generally requires a medium—a conduit through which the ritual can be completed. Since I don't have a physical medium at my disposal, I'll use a sacrifice." as he spoke, Ashok slowly unwrapped the shirt from around his left hand.
[Care to explain what will be the sacrifice?]
Ashok's eyes flickered with a cold intensity as he bent down, his gaze scanning the scattered shards of glass that littered the floor. His fingers brushed over the jagged edges of the pieces, careful not to touch them directly. After a few seconds of searching, his eyes locked on a larger shard, one that caught the dim light and shimmered with a dangerous gleam. Without hesitation, he carefully slid his left hand, still wrapped in the shirt, over the shard, lifting it gently.
"My memory," Ashok muttered, he turned on his heel and walked out of the washroom, the shard glowing faintly in the dim light.
As he shut the washroom door behind him, the familiar voice of the System echoed in his mind, cold and analytical.
[If I am not wrong, summoning is the act of connecting two planes to call a mid or high-ranking demon, as they are the only ones capable of granting a wish. Once a demon is summoned, it will first claim the sacrifice, and then, depending on the quality of that sacrifice, it will grant a wish.
Will you not lose your entire memory the moment the demon claims the sacrifice? Because there is no such thing as a partial sacrifice.]